An oily lesson on Alaska and corporate blurbs

As part of a national public relations campaign, an executive from oil giant ConocoPhillips stopped at a Carson High School geology class. Few students knew where their gas comes from, let alone the location of the North Slope.

Stephen Hipp, 17, learned Wednesday morning that one out of every six barrels of oil produced in the U.S. comes from the Alaskan North Slope.

"I didn't even know about Alaska," the Carson High junior said. "I didn't know they are drilling there. I thought we were getting it from Iraq or overseas."

The ConocoPhillips executive also came to dispel a myth, which was the first question asked of the day: Are we running out of oil?

Joe Leone, vice president of drilling and production, said to about 20 junior and senior students that the world isn't running out of oil, but it's getting harder to find and more expensive to extract.

He said one way for the industry to keep up with a rising global energy demand would be to drill in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The North Slope may conjure images of a diverse wildlife refuge, but Leone said the frozen tundra is not affected by advanced methods of oil extraction.

Kat Martin, 17, a junior, said she was swayed by Leone's presentation, which included pictures of bears walking on top of the pipeline and "before and after" shots of North Slope drilling, showing what Leone described as little impact on the environment.

"I was always told what they were doing up there was destroying Alaska," she said. "It doesn't look destroyed. If anything I'd say (drilling) actually helps it."

Tiffany Bell, 16, is a little more hesitant to start drilling in a wildlife preserve, but she also believes arguing against it is futile. Money plays a large role in preservation and conservation, she said.

"It's just ruining the state more if they drill, but I think they've already drilled it so it doesn't really matter," the high school junior said.

Leone, who has worked for oil companies for 22 years, said he doesn't care whether the refuge is open to future drilling. He wants future voters to be informed.

"We feel very strongly that if they are making informed decisions, they are making better decisions," he said.

Geology teacher Gary Casselman said he told his students to remember that ConocoPhillips is an oil company, and has an agenda.

"I think it's good for them still to see it," he said. "It's good for them to see a group of highly educated people who have also become successful."

• Contact reporter Becky Bosshart at bbosshart@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1212.