Dennis E. Welch is executive vice president - Environment, Safety & Health and Facilities for American Electric Power. He leads all of AEP's environmental, safety and health activities, including compliance with all federal, state and local regulations, as well as federal and state public policy initiatives and advocacy. In addition, he has responsibility for forestry, real estate transactions, travel and food services, mail print centers, facility management and other business services.

Under his leadership, the company's commitment to sustainability advanced significantly, nationally and internationally, and was clearly defined in AEP's first Corporate Responsibility Report in 2007. He is based in Columbus, Ohio. As a senior officer of the company, he serves on the company's Executive Council.

American Electric Power is one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, delivering electricity to more than 5.1 million customers in 11 states. AEP is the nation's largest generator of electricity, owning nearly 38,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the U.S. AEP also owns the nation's largest electricity transmission system, a nearly 39,000-mile network that includes more 765-kilovolt extra-high voltage transmission lines than all other U.S. transmission systems combined. The company owns and operates approximately 210,000 miles of overhead and underground distribution lines. AEP controls more than 8,300 rail cars, 2,300 barges and 53 towboats and operates a coal-handling terminal with 20 million tons of capacity.

Welch was previously president and chief operating officer of Yankee Gas & Yankee Energy System, an operating subsidiary of Northeast Utilities (NU) in Berlin, CT. He was named president and chief operating officer of Yankee Gas, Connecticut's largest natural gas distribution company, and Yankee Energy System in 2001. During his tenure at Yankee Energy, Welch chaired the Northeast Gas Association for two years, helping the industry trade association navigate through difficult times and a merger with the New York Gas Association. A 20-year veteran of NU, Welch served as vice president of Environmental, Safety & Ethics at NU for four years immediately prior to his position at Yankee Gas & Yankee Energy.

A native of New Albany, Ind., Welch earned a bachelor's degree in environmental, health and safety management from Indiana State University at Terre Haute and a master's degree in business and human resource management from the Hartford Graduate Center of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He also completed the Executive Environmental Leadership Program at Yale University's School of Forestry and Environmental Studies.

Currently, Welch serves as AEP's voting representative to the national Center for Energy and Economic Development (CEED) Board of Directors and is AEP's primary representative to its Executive Committee. He also serves on the AEP Foundation Board of Directors and he represents AEP at the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.

Welch is chairman of the Finance and Operating Committee of Americans for Balanced Energy Choices (ABEC). He is also a member of the Center for Resilience Advisory Board at The Ohio State University and the Ohio Environmental Health Science Advisory Committee. And, he is a board member of the Greater Columbus Sports Commission.

In addition to being past chairman of the Northeast Gas Association (NGA), he also chaired the NGA's Gas Supply Task Force. He also was a member of the Board of Directors of the American Gas Association (AGA), AGA's Leadership Council, and the AGA's Security, Integrity and Reliability Committee. He is immediate past chairman of the Research and Advisory Committee for the Electric Power Research Institute. He served on the University of Connecticut's Advisory Board for the School of Engineering and the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Advisory Board Nuclear & Environmental Engineering. He is a former member of the Board of Trustees for The Nature Conservancy and a former member of the Connecticut Yankee Atomic Power Company Decommissioning Advisory Board, and the National Safety Council Public Utilities Executive Committee.

Welch lives in New Albany, Ohio, with his wife Elizabeth Monahan. He has a daughter, Danielle, who lives in Maryland.