Houston (Platts)--2Aug2011/551 pm EDT/2151 GMT

The governor of Colorado on Tuesday announced a joint program between the state and the oil and natural gas industry to collect groundwater samples before and after hydraulic fracturing operations, to test whether they are harmful to the environment.

Governor John Hickenlooper, a Democrat, said the effort was the first of its kind and was needed to build trust with the public and fight doubts and "paranoia" about the effects of hydraulic fracturing operations.

"The best way to fight back on that kind of misinformation is to be transparent ... to clearly demonstrate beyond any possible doubt that this doesn't happen," he told the Colorado Oil & Gas Association's Energy Epicenter conference in Denver.

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The water sampling effort will be a statewide, voluntary program where groundwater samples would be collected by a third-party, with oversight and monitoring by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. The department would also hold onto all the sampling data, which would allow it to evaluate trends and water quality, Hickenlooper said.

Hickenlooper also said many larger drillers, representing 90% of all the wells set to be drilled in 2011, have already signed up for the program. He said he is hoping for near 100% participation.

COGA initially approached the governor with the idea and has been instrumental in getting companies on board, the governor added.

The governor also said such water sampling has been taking place in the San Juan Basin for some time because of the number of shallow wells there and concerns of possible water contamination.

Hickenlooper said news reports on fracking -- including recent articles in The New York Times -- were full of misinformation and distortions of facts, causing a public mistrust and paranoia about the industry. "This is all hyperbole and anxiety being expressed ... and no science here," he said.

The New York Times articles alleged that in several states -- most notably Pennsylvania -- wastewater treatment plants could not remove harmful contaminants from fracturing fluids.

Speaking on the sidelines of the conference, the governor said The New York Times articles were somewhat of a catalyst that has caused the industry to take action.

"The New York Times is the big time. When they say things, they have a great deal of journalistic credibility. I disagree with a large amount of what was in those articles ... but their reach is so deep, it's made a lot of oil and gas people say, 'maybe we have to go further than we thought we had to.'"

Hickenlooper also said he is working with state regulators on a plan to require companies to disclose the chemicals they use in hydraulic fracturing.

"I think we'll have something done similar to Wyoming and Texas in the months ahead," he said, referring to disclosure requirements in those states. "I think companies should have a full public disclosure of all their chemicals."

--Eunice Bridges, eunice_bridges@platts.com