Landscape

The surroundings of Elektrėnai distinguish for their very valuable landscape: forests, hills, and waters – rivers, lakes, ponds. Thus, there are many places where one can be in touch with nature. In the rather small territory, there are 106 lakes and other water bodies, the area of each exceeds 0.4 ha. Therefore, in summertime, a person who likes resting in the nature does not have to look for such places far away.
The country of Elektrėnai is in-between two physical-geographical areas of Lithuania: its north-eastern part is in the Baltic plain, its central and southern parts are in the region of moraine highlands of the last glacial period. Consequently, it is not surprising that the territory is pleasing because of plateaus so typical of the halfway of the River Nemunas and the lower reaches of the River Neris. In its southeast, there are highlands of Southern Lithuania. The landscape is beautiful: many hills, dips, ravines, due to which angles of the relief vary from 1.5 to 6 degrees. The lowest places are by the River Neris: they reach just 66.7 meters above sea level. The average hight of the relief is found near Vievis Lake (111.2 m). The highest places are in the locality of Rusakalnis Village (217.9 m). Nuobariškės hill is 228.7 m in height.
Forests cover 29.2 percent of the territory of Municipality. The area of forests is a bit smaller here than in the rest part of Lithuania on the average (30.6 percent) and much smaller than in Vilnius County where forests occupy even 39 percent of the territory. Coniferous woods prevail in the territory. Pinewoods make about two thirds of them. Deciduous trees (birches, black/grey alders, asps) take the second place. Oak-woods and ash-woods occupy just few hundreds of hectares. Natural, self-sow forest covers even 77.5 percent of the forestland. Almost a half of the forests belongs to the state. Another half of them belongs to private owners. State forests are managed by Kaišiadorys Forest Directorate (2 forestry offices) and Trakai Forest Directorate (8 forestry offices). By their uses, the largest areas are of those of business purpose. Areas of protection of ecosystems take the second place and the ones of recreation are the third.

Protected territories

Although in the territory of Elektrėnai Municipality there are not many areas protected by the state, natural complexes to be protected and worth of care by establishing at least local conservation areas are quite a lot.
Trakai Historical-National Park (established in 1991) covers 8164 ha. The biggest part of HNP is located in Trakai Region Municipality. Its western part with Daugirdiškės Forest and its picturesque surroundings is in the territory of Elektrėnai Municipality. In the park, there are found many archaeological, historical, and architectural valuables. A strictly protected zone occupies about one third of the park’s territory: It consists of two reservations, over ten different conservation areas of culture, landscape, and nature (mounds of the River Bražuolė, tumuli dated 9th - 12th centuries, and cemeteries dated 14th - 15th centuries).
Regional Park of the River Neris.  In the Regional Park of the River Neris, there are conservation areas of nature and culture (mounds and archaeological monuments). The Park is dislocated in the northeast of Municipality and spreads along both sides of the River Neris, across the territories of Elektrėnai and Vilnius Municipalities. To preserve biological diversity, there are established Bražuolė and Vepriai conservation areas of botany where rare and extinguishing species of plants as well as fragments of forests of South Lithuania are flourishing. Protected objects of landscape are especially unique: Veigeliškės Oak and the Queen of Oaks. Conservation areas of landscapes of Dūkštai, Velniakampis, Kulys and Sviliškės are guarding particularly beautiful landscapes. There are the famous oak-wood of Dūkštai, in dips – small lakes of Velniakampis, Beržiukas, Karalaitė and Vepriai, starts Saidžiai spring. Very valuable natural complexes of Aliosia, Čekonė and Semeniukai are also protected. 
There are not many conservation areas in the territory of Municipality, however all they are very valuable and interesting.

Strošiūnai Landscape Conservation Area is one of them. Its eastern part is in the territory of Elektrėnai Municipality and its central and western ones are in the territory of Kaišiadorys Municipality. The area covering 3138 ha is designed to preserve the especially distinct landscape of the very unique, very abraded moraine lift. 
Pipiriškės Geomorphologic Conservation Area also protects the landscape of the unique relief. The area of 519 ha is a perfect place to view the most beautiful surroundings of Municipality and to get to know the complex of peripheral moraine elements, which are typical only of the highlands of Dzūkai. Ilgis Ornithological Conservation Area is designed to protect a unique community of birds of water and wading birds. Over 100 species of birds among which there are ones very rare and protected not only in Lithuania, but also in Europe (ferruginous ducks, shovellers,  pallid harriers, black seagulls, spotted crakes, bluethroats, bearded tits and others) visit or sit in the conservation area and its approaches. Municipality Pūstakiemis Conservation Area of Botany is another protected territory. It covers a very small area, hardly reaching 0.7 ha, designed to protect a rarity of the Lithuanian botany, meadow saffron. The natural complex of the River Bražuolė , which is both very rapid and swampy, is particularly valuable on the national level. Here we may find natural meadows, bio-tops of everglades, reeds of swamps, marshes by the river and lakes. Flora and fauna are very diverse here. Many habitats and great biological diversity are also found in swampy black ash-woods of Nestrėvantis Lake and nearby banks with dry meadows and swampy surroundings of the lake with reeds. The natural complex of Bizdukas Lake is also to be protected because of biological diversity as there are perfect habitats for rare and protected species of plants and animals.   
Complexes of nature of Salciekas, Švenčius and Briaunas Lakes as well as of Aujėdas and Gilūšis Lakes are very important for protection of animals since here are ideal conditions to live and breed. In addition, in natural meadows of strands, there are flourishing communities of interesting flora  as well as there exist fine habitats for rare plants.    
In order to determine what habitats, biological diversity (fauna and flora) and species of the Red Book of Lithuania exist in the territory of Elektrėnai Municipality, in 2003, Municipality prepared Evaluation on the Basis of Ecological Network Natura 2000 of Valuable Non-Protected Natural Territories. During evaluation of natural territories and exploration of biological diversity of Municipality in 2002 – 2003, even 252 species of vertebrates, that is, more than a half of such species of Lithuania, were found. Samples of the ecological network Natura 2000 in Elektrėnai Municipality are Kietaviškės fishery pond (fire-bellied toad (Bombina bombina), Lentvaris forestry office territory (forests of large-leaved trees, mixed forests, marshy forests, alluvial forests), Semeliškės (bog twayblade (Liparis loeselii) and alkaline everglades).

Soils

Soils are not productive and fertile in the territory of Municipality. That is determined by the geological past and diversified landscape of the locality. Thus, agriculture is not simple and easy here. Soils in hills most often contain gravel, clay loam, and sand. Clayey soils prevail in plains. Fertile soils rich with humus are found by rivers, in floodplains, and near lakes. Turfy albeluvisol, little and medium albeluvisol soils make the largest part. 
As whole Lithuania, Municipality is in the geographic zone with excess dampness. More precipitation falls per year (700 mm) than evaporates (540 mm). Of them, about 32 percent of water drains. Almost a half of days in the year are with fall. In the warm period, there is twice as much fall as in the cold period. Heavy rains are frequent in summer. The least fall in a form of snow and ice occurs in January and in February. Most water evaporates during vegetation and only one third of it in winter.
The present landscape is dominated by agricultural land, forests, water bodies, swamps, and developed areas. Forests, water bodies, trees and bushes, swamps, meadows, and grazing lands form natural and half-natural territories covering even 48.4 percent of the area of Municipality while towns hardly occupy 4.8 percent of it.
Agricultural land consisting of arable, meadows, and gardens occupy a bit more than a half of the administrative territory. To compare with the average of the country, in the surroundings of Elektrėnai there are relatively more water bodies, swamps, and swampy locations.  

Water

Elektrėnai Municipality is among these ones, in the territories of which there are most water bodies. In the area, there are 101 lakes. Shallow, little, mostly with swampy strands, and rather slimy lakes prevail. Vievis Lake (294.5 ha), Ilgis Lake (154.2 ha), and Vaisietis Lake (89.7 ha) are the largest and the deepest ones.  
In addition to natural water bodies, in Municipality, there are many artificial ones:  Pastrėvys ponds (87.5 ha) and Elektrėnai Sea (1289.6 ha, 33 metres in depth, volume – 93.4 million m³). Ponds and lakes are interconnected by systems of trenches, rivers, and streams. Due to specifics of the relief in the surroundings of Elektrėnai, there are not many of them: 21 streams and about 20 straight reclamation channels. The density of the river network makes from 0.50 to 0.75 km/km². The most watery and swift rivers are Strėva, Bražuolė, Žiežmara, and Spengla. They are ascribed to the hydrological area of the south-eastern Lithuania and flow eastwards, into the basin of the River Neris.  
Water of all rivers is medium (in spring and summer) and totally (in autumn and winter) clean.
Although in the territory of Elektrėnai Municipality there are no official bathing places, there are 4 non-official: two by the water body of Elektrėnai and other by Vievis and Zelva Lakes.
To date, following the Water Quality Monitoring Programme (Resolution No 1380 of the Government of the Republic of Lithuania dated on 20/11/2001), Elektrėnai Municipality has to legitimize and maintain bathing places, to form the information system of the territory’s bathing places, to compile maps thereof, and to identify sources of their pollution. Only a part of the sources of pollution is known (for example, only partial treatment of household sewerage exists in Vievis; there is no rain drainage). In the territory of Municipality, there are no enterprises, which drain over 1000 m3 pollutants per day into open water bodies or into soil.