Natural resources

Taiyuan has abundant mineral deposits of metal ores such as iron, manganese, copper, aluminum, lead and zinc, and non-metallic minerals of coal, sulfur, gypsum, vanadium, saltpeter, refractory clay, quartz, limestone, dolomite and Shimei sand. Taiyuan is seated in the middle of China's "coal sea", a nickname for Central China's Shanxi province that is rich in coal resources. The coal deposit in Taiyuan, geologically known as Taiyuan coal, is a major component of Shanxi's coal resources; its reserves rank seventh in the province. Iron ore reserves in Taiyuan are also abundant and widely distributed; although the city's ferrous manganese ore reserves are relatively small. Gypsum ranks third in Taiyuan's mineral products, and is well known for its texture.

The coal-bearing area of Taiyuan covers 1,282 square kilometers, accounting for about 20 percent of the city's total area and local coal proven reserves are estimated at 18.5 billion metric tons. Meanwhile, the preliminary proven reserves of iron ore in Taiyuan are estimated at 170 million tons.

The Taiyuan flora contains seed plants, ferns, mosses, lichens, algae and fungi. It is characterized by abundant plant resources, ancient plant origins, and a large number of monotypic genus plants.

Taiyuan has plenty of wild animal resources. There are 16 animal species, 37 families and 173 species of birds in Taiyuan. Four of the bird groups are protected at the national level, 27 are protected at the national secondary level and eight are protected at the Shanxi provincial level. There are 80 kinds of migratory birds protected by China and Japan. There is one animal species protected at the national level, five kinds of national secondary protected animals, and three groups of animals mainly protected at the provincial level.