Amy Mall, Senior Policy Analyst, Washington, D.C.

There is something unusual about the latest newspaper and radio advertisements from the Colorado Oil and Gas Association (COGA). While there is nothing new about the oil and gas industry spending money to convince Americans that fracking is safe, what sets the latest ads apart from typical industry propaganda is that the spokesperson in these ads is Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper.

In the radio ad, the Governor states that Colorado has not had "one instance of groundwater contamination associated with drilling and hydraulic fracturing" since Colorado enacted some new rules in 2008. It's true that Colorado's 2008 rules were a vast improvement compared to the previous rules.

But that doesn't mean that the rules are strong enough, that all fracking activities are safe in Colorado, or that human health and the environment are sufficiently protected. The 2008 rules were a step in the right direction, but did not go far enough to protect communities and their citizens from dangerous air pollution, groundwater contamination, and enormous amounts of toxic waste. 

In Colorado, archaic rules allow toxic oil and gas facilities to be as close as 150 feet to a child's bedroom window. These operations can be in someone's backyard and on their property without consent if a family does not own ...

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