ABSTRACT
In the centrally planning and control economy, as it was in Lithuania almost for fifty years, regulation of the energy sector was performed by the Government, one may remember that all utilities were state owned. Environmental issues were highly neglected, so energy sector was making significant negative impact on the surrounding environment. Power plants were burning high sulphur heavy fuel oil and no cleaning equipment was installed at any plant, neither at the refinery where this fuel was produced. Lakes at the power plants used as coolers were overheated (this caused especially serious problems for the living species at the Visaginas lake used as a cooler of the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant).
