A four-month-old group supporting hydraulic fracturing (fracking), Coloradans for Responsible Energy Development (CRED), has launched a website (www.StudyFracking.com) to spread its message in a state where fracking faces increased opposition from activists.

The website emphasizes that fracking has been around for 60 years and has been used safely by the industry through that long history, and adds that widespread economic growth has resulted. It cites a University of Colorado Leeds School of Business assessment of the state’s oil and natural gas industry in 2012 as calculating nearly $30 billion in contributions to the state’s economy that year.

“Collectively, that’s more than 110,000 high-paying jobs and $1.6 billion in tax revenues for Colorado,” according to CRED’s Jon Haubert, who added that oil/gas development is a “cornerstone” of the Colorado economy.

CRED says the website is a source for accurate information on fracking, a topic about which there are many questions.

“We began compiling straightforward answers to get to the heart of [Coloradans’] most pressing concerns as we listened to what [citizens] wanted to know,” said Haubert, CRED communications director.

The information is intended to combat “false rumors” that have skewed the impression Coloradans have of fracking, he said.