AEP Retirees & Alumni

The goal of the Transportation Electrification Accord is to educate policymakers on how to advance electric transportation in a manner that provides economic, social and environmental benefits.

AEP has announced that it is participating as a signatory to the Transportation Electrification Accord. The goal of the Accord is to educate policymakers on how to advance electric transportation in a manner that provides economic, social and environmental benefits.

The Accord outlines how transportation electrification can be advanced in a manner that benefits all utility customers and users of all forms of transportation, while supporting the evolution of a cleaner grid. The Accord also reflects broad stakeholder support for principles to guide the development of electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure.

Signatories include:

• In addition to AEP, other leading electric utilities such as Southern Company, Exelon, SCE, PG&E, SDG&E and National Grid.
• Major auto industry manufacturers and suppliers (GM, Honda, BYD, etc.)
• Industry organizations (EEI, Alliance for Transportation Electrification, Plug In America, Advanced Energy Economy, etc.)
• Non-governmental organizations (CERES, NRDC, Sierra Club, etc.)

Phil Dion, vice president of Technology Business Development said that “accelerating customer adoption of EVs is an important objective, as we can lower customer bills through the optimized use of the grid, while simultaneously increasing our revenues. The principles of this accord support our role as the critical enabler and integrator of EVs and charging infrastructure.”

Sandy Nessing, managing director of Corporate Sustainability added, “EVs are a fantastic example of how AEP can support new electric technology adoption that improves the environment, consistent with our sustainability objectives.”

Among the guiding principles of the Accord are the following statements:

• There is a clear case for electrifying transportation, which can provide benefits to all consumers (including the socioeconomically disadvantaged), advance economic development, create jobs, provide grid services, integrate more renewable energy, and cut air pollution and greenhouse gases.
• Accelerating an appropriate deployment of electric vehicle charging infrastructure based on market penetration projections along highway corridors, as well as throughout local cities and towns, is a critical element of electrifying transportation.
• It is critical to support electric transportation at the state and local government levels, whether it be through governors, state legislators, state commissions, state transportation agencies, state energy offices, mayors, or local governments.
• Under appropriate rules, it is in the public interest to allow investor-owned and publicly-owned utilities to participate in and facilitate the deployment of electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) and/or supporting infrastructure for residential and commercial applications in their service territories to accomplish state and local policy goals. The distribution grid is incorporating new grid-edge features such as advanced demand response and distributed energy storage. In that broader context, utilities are well-positioned to ensure that installed EVSE, whether owned by utilities or other parties, maximizes the public benefits of these innovations, through appropriate integration of these technologies in order to maximize electrical system benefits for all classes of customers.
• Utilities should proactively engage their regulators, consumers and all stakeholders in developing rate designs, infrastructure deployment programs, and education and outreach efforts that benefit all utility customers and allow reasonable cost recovery, while accelerating widespread transportation electrification that supports a reliable and robust grid.

AEP manages and maintains about 40,000 miles of transmission line and related right-of-way areas. To maintain reliability, utilities work in power line corridors to plant and manage vegetation, control erosion, and trim or remove trees that encroach on grid equipment.

(Story by Linda O’horo)

Across its footprint, AEP values and practices environmental stewardship to preserve our natural ecosystem. This week, AEP joins other power companies to raise awareness about the crucial role of pollinators (bees, butterflies, birds, and other creatures) in flower and plant fertilization, and about its efforts to facilitate pollinator population growth through vegetation management.

AEP manages and maintains about 40,000 miles of transmission line and related right-of-way areas. To maintain reliability, utilities work in power line corridors to plant and manage vegetation, control erosion, and trim or remove trees that encroach on grid equipment.

In addition to following vegetation management measures to comply with federal regulations, AEP has added a number of voluntary environmental projects to support pollinator populations, which are declining in some areas.

Typically, transmission right-of-way areas are dominated by non-native grasses and weedy species. These offer a poor habitat for native wildlife, and require regular mowing or herbicide treatments.

“In transmission corridors in some regions, we can plant native prairie grasses and flowers which potentially inhibit tree growth, control erosion, tolerate drought, and increase biodiversity,” says Tim Lohner, Ph.D., AEP consulting environmental specialist. “Once growth is established, minimal maintenance is needed. While native grass seed generally costs more, savings result because fertilizers are not required, and there is a reduced need for herbicides and mowing, over time.”

Through AEP Transmission’s Team Transmission 2022 projects, teams of employees investigate ways to drive down operations and maintenance costs. One of the selected projects studies the use of native seed mixes throughout the service territory.

AEP’s Voluntary Initiatives to Help Pollinators

AEP partners with a number of communities and nonprofit organizations for voluntary initiatives and projects which benefit pollinators and other wildlife. Examples of AEP right-of-way projects which support pollinators include:

AEP is partnering with the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and the nonprofit Dawes Arboretum (near Newark, Ohio) to create a biodiverse prairie habitat along a transmission right-of-way.

• Creation of Biodiverse Prairie Habitat: AEP is partnering with the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and the nonprofit Dawes Arboretum (near Newark, Ohio) to create a biodiverse prairie habitat along a transmission right-of-way. Native prairie species were planted in six test plots in the right-of-way area, which includes forest and farmland habitat. In the first year of monitoring, researchers observed no erosion and documented rich biodiversity: nine bee species, 21 bird species, and nine butterfly species. Over the next few years, habitat quality, erosion control, and tree growth will be monitored. AEP and EPRI are also involved with other pollinator initiatives and ROW vegetation management studies.
• Right-of-Way Restoration Using Pollinator-Friendly Plant Seed Mix: Amy Toohey, environmental specialist consultant for AEP Environmental Services’ Water & Ecological Resource Services, is managing a pilot project involving substituting a pollinator-friendly plant seed mix for restoration damaged vegetation in a right-of-way area for a 138-kV transmission line, which runs through a portion of the Pleasant Valley Wildlife Area (ODNR-managed).
• ROW as Habitat Workgroup, University of Illinois-Chicago:  AEP is a member of a multi-sector partnership, coordinated by the Energy Resources Center, which is developing a voluntary Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances (CCAA), a USFWS regulatory mechanism that would encourage land managers (including energy companies and transportation agencies) to voluntarily adopt measures that are beneficial to the monarch butterfly. CCAA incentives could include planting native plants, and using Integrated Vegetation Management best practices and other conservation measures to maintain plants that monarchs and other pollinators need. In the last 20 years, the population of monarch butterflies in the eastern United States has declined by 80 percent, putting the species in jeopardy. A primary cause is loss of lands containing native flowering plants that the butterflies need for food.

Coming Soon – Right-of-Way Vegetation Plot Demonstration for the Public: Adjacent to the existing New Albany Transmission Headquarters building and the second headquarters building now under construction, a designated 10-acre area will be landscaped and planted this fall to create demonstration plots featuring AEP’s vegetation management plants. AEP’s environmental specialists are involved, along with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR), a number of nonprofit organizations, and a horticulturalist from a seed company.

A sampling of current AEP environmental initiatives and projects includes:

Each year, Conesville Plant hosts a number of environmental and community organizations which present on various topics during Earth Day activities.

• SWEPCO Region – Flint Creek Eagle Watch Area: Terry Stanfill, a retired Flint Creek Power Plant employee, manages this project and partners with the City of Gentry (Arkansas) and five area organizations. Supported by Southwestern Power Company (SWEPCO) and the Flint Creek Plant, it promotes environmental education and supports local wildlife, including pollinators. This 65-acre area includes a trail and a pavilion to view eagles that visit a nearby cooling lake. Stanfill coordinates field trips and activities for local schools, Audubon clubs, 4-H and scouting groups. He works with the Gentry Fire Department to conduct annual burns of the on-site prairie, and has maintained the site’s Wildlife Habitat Council Certification. The plant has received numerous awards from local business and environmental organizations.
• SWEPCO – Flint Creek Plant Landfill: After a typical seed mix did not grow well on a portion of the landfill, there were concerns about erosion. Working with the University of Arkansas and a horticulturalist from a seed company, Flint Creek and AEP Environmental staff developed a seed mix with native species, which became well-established – providing drought and erosion tolerance and wildlife benefits.
• Earth Day Events Supported in Various Communities: AEP owns and operates the Conesville Plant in Conesville, Ohio. Each year, the plant hosts a number of environmental and community organizations which present on various topics. This year, three groups from AEP Environmental Services talked about the environment to groups of fifth and sixth graders from local area schools. They also collected insects and learned about pollinators.
• Ohio Region: Power Plant Ash Pond Closure Management: AEP Environmental Services is helping manage the closure of a fly ash pond at the Gavin Plant (a coal-powered plant in Cheshire, Ohio formerly owned by AEP), and installing native vegetation to support pollinators, deer, and turkey. This project is guided by an ODNR administrator, wildlife biologists from the USFWS and Pheasants Forever (nonprofit conservation organization for wildlife and habitat improvements).
• Ohio Region – Rain Garden at Georgian Heights Alternative Elementary School, designed and sponsored by AEP.

Learn more about AEP’s environmental stewardship efforts on AEP’s Stewardship in Action page or in AEP’s Corporate Accountability Report.  If you have other examples of pollinator work across the AEP system, or wish to become more involved, contact Tim Lohner at twlohner@aep.com or 614-716-1255.

Tara Williams (left) talks about her Special Olympics experiences as Kate Burdett of Special Olympics Ohio looks on.

AEP’s ADAPT Employee Resource Group sponsored a visit from Special Olympics Ohio representatives May 24 at AEP Headquarters. The lunch and learn meeting provided an opportunity to learn more about the non-profit organization and volunteer opportunities with the group.

Kate Burdett, director of marketing, Tara Williams, athlete leader, and Katelyn Beno, special events manager, attended the ADAPT event.

Jim Brosnahan, ADAPT chair, spoke about the organization’s value to him and his son, Jimmy, who is involved in Special Olympics track, basketball and bowling. “Special Olympics is not just about the activities and sports. Over the years, you develop connections with the people involved that really makes them like an extended family,” he said.

The annual State Summer Games are held on the campus of The Ohio State University, Burdett said. That event will draw 2,500 athletes from across the state competing in 11 track and field events on June 22-24. But it’s just one part of a year-long cycle of athletic events organized by Special Olympics.

“We have Special Olympics events happening every day of the year, from practices to events, and volunteers are needed at all levels,” Burdett said.

The organization is run almost entirely by volunteers, with more than 12,000 individuals donating their time to help. Volunteering can involve coaching and sports training, officiating, helping with fundraising, chaperoning, organizational and administrative work, or just cheering on and encouraging the athletes, she said. No special training is required, although volunteers must submit an application form.

Williams has been involved in Special Olympics for 27 years. She will be competing in golf at the National Special Olympics Games in Seattle in July. Over the years, the Hilliard, Ohio, resident has been involved in many sports and now focuses on golf and tennis.

Special Olympics Ohio has approximately 200 local member organizations. It supports more than 23,000 adults, youth and children with cognitive, developmental or learning disabilities who are in training and competition.

PSO hosts Oklahoma State Games event

Public Service Company of Oklahoma employees, along with family members, friends and retirees, have been involved in the Special Olympics Oklahoma State Summer Games for 33 years. PSO annually stages the softball throw event in the summer games. This year, 103 volunteers from AEP and PSO helped at the games held May 17-18 at the campus of Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Okla. The state games hosted more than 5,000 athletes. Tracy Weldon coordinated the volunteer effort this year.

John Winebrenner, left, assists biologist John Castrale in banding the falcon chicks.

(Story by Tracy Warner)

FORT WAYNE — Three falcon chicks nesting on the roof of Indiana Michigan Power Center received identification bands and were named May 22 during an event hosted by I&M.

Teens for Nature, whose members volunteer at the Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo, named the male chicks Glenn, in honor of astronaut and U.S. Sen. John Glenn, and Ranger. They named the female Phoebe.

John Glenn, who passed away in December 2017 at the age of 95, was one of the original Mercury Seven astronauts and was the first American to orbit the Earth in 1962. In 1998, at the age of 77, he returned to space aboard the space shuttle Discovery to become the oldest person to go into space.

More than 30 members of the group were in attendance along with volunteers from Soarin’ Hawk Raptor Rehabilitation, a Fort Wayne-based organization that has assisted with the falcons at IMPC  for more than two decades.

John Castrale, a non-game bird biologist retired from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, banded the three chicks, as he has since the first chicks were born atop the building in 1996. By putting leg bands on the young birds, biologists are able to track the movements and survival of Midwestern peregrine falcons. When mature, most young birds will settle from 50 to 200 miles from where they were raised.

Soarin’ Hawk volunteers presented an educational overview and answered questions about the birds. Volunteers also held the chicks to give attendees a close-up look.

The three chicks bring to 55 the number of young falcons that have hatched on the building and were banded by the DNR. This is the sixth consecutive year that Moxie, the female, and Jamie, the male, have produced chicks.

The event received local media coverage from The Journal Gazette, WANE TV and WPTA 21.

A number of AEP employees have been involved with a non-profit group, Freedom’s Never Free, that organizes appreciation celebrations for military veterans.

A number of AEP employees have been involved with a non-profit group, Freedom’s Never Free, that organizes appreciation celebrations for military veterans.

The Freedom’s Never Free group, based in central Ohio, has also helped build a number of traveling memorials to service members who died in World War II, the Korean War, and Small Wars and Conflicts from the 1950s to now.

“From participating in the monthly planning meetings to volunteering their time and manual labor helping build the traveling memorials, we’ve been blessed with a small handful of AEP employees who have donated their help,” said Jeannie Phillips-Ball, president of the organization.

Employees Aaron Baker, designer principal; Kyle Edwards, designer principal; and Susan Acton, project coordinator senior, all of whom work for AEP Transmission in New Albany, have provided their time and talent to help create the memorials over the past few years.

Baker and Edwards drew up plans for various segments of the World War II memorial, and Acton helped paint and attach stars, and brought her father, a Korean War veteran, to help as well.

Phillips-Ball, IT support technician principal, IT Depot, Groveport, worked on the memorial from start to finish, helping drill holes, paint, cut wood, attach stars and put together panels.

The Freedom’s Never Free group organizes and carries out an annual military veterans recognition event each November, held in Lancaster, Ohio.

The Traveling World War II Memorial, modeled after the permanent National World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C., was built in 2015. It is now taken around the country to events that honor veterans and the military. The memorial consists of a Wall of Stars, Atlantic and Pacific Pavilions; 56 pillars reprsenting the states, districts and territories in existence during the World War II era, with oak and wheat wreaths, and granite slabs with quotes from President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Gen. Douglas McArthur. The World War II memorial will be in southeast Missouri July 3-8.

This year, the organization will display five traveling memorials to honor the men and women who have served and are currently serving our country at the annual Freedom’s Never Free appreciation celebration: the Traveling WWII Memorial, the Traveling Korean Memorial, the Traveling Vietnam Memorial Wall, the Traveling Lima Company’s Eyes of Freedom, and the Traveling Small Wars and Conflicts Memorial. These memorials have never appeared together before.

The National World War II Memorial, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., includes 56 pillars representing the unity of all U.S. states and territories at the time of the war; the Freedom Wall including 4,048 stars each representing 100 U.S. soldiers who died in the war; and pavilion-like arches commemorating victory in the Atlantic and Pacific theaters of the war.