Obama's comments in Tuesday's State of the Union speech "should send a message to all the folks back home that even the president has vetted this and we need to move forward together," said Republican Rep. Tom Reed of Corning.

In his speech, Obama said America's natural gas reserves could meet the nation's energy needs for 100 years and could provide 600,000 jobs by the end of the decade.

"The development of natural gas will create jobs and power trucks and factories that are cleaner and cheaper, proving that we don't have to choose between our environment and our economy," Obama said.

The Bureau of Land Management estimates 90 percent of natural gas drilling on public lands involves hydraulic fracturing, in which a mixture of chemicals, sand and water is injected into shale formations to open fissures and allow the natural gas to come to the surface.

Lawrence Cathles, a geology professor at Cornell University's College of Engineering, hopes the president's comments will prod New York to end its moratorium on new drilling for natural gas in the Marcellus Shale.

"It's a very big resource and can be developed with minimal environmental risk," he said.

Oil and natural gas industry spokespersons also saw Obama's comments as a positive sign.

"Using newer technologies to harvest homegrown energy is a vital component in job creation and commerce by powering businesses and factories that are cleaner and cheaper," Brad Gill, president of the Independent Oil and Gas Association of New York, said in a statement.

"We stand ready to work with him," said Julia Bell, spokeswoman for the Independent Petroleum Association of America.

The Interior Department plans to sell 33 oil and gas drilling leases this year, Secretary Ken Salazar told a House committee in November. In 2010, the agency sold 33 leases for drilling on 3.2 million acres of federal land.

Hydraulic fracturing on public lands uses the same technology used by Marcellus Shale drillers in Pennsylvania. The industry hopes to use that technology once New York develops its own regulations and lifts its moratorium.

Obama also announced Tuesday that he will require drillers to disclose the chemicals they inject into wells, a demand made by environmentalists. The industry has resisted such disclosures of what it says is proprietary information.

Democratic Rep. Maurice Hinchey of Ulster County said he supports Obama's decision.

"The American people will know exactly what chemicals are being pumped into the ground, making it easier to hold drillers accountable if those chemicals end up in someone's well or our water supply," he said.

Hinchey wasn't as positive, however, about Obama's broader support for natural gas, saying the president has "endorsed questionable estimates of shale gas reserves and overstated industry claims about job creation."

Reed, whose Southern Tier congressional district is largely within the Marcellus Shale region, described the disclosure requirement as "a good proposal" as long as New York state officials handle enforcement and there's no overlap by federal officials.

Although that edict won't apply to private land, it's expected to have an impact on the industry's practices.

Disclosure of chemicals used by well drillers has been under consideration by the Interior Department since last year. The agency is still developing the disclosure rule, which will include some protection for trade secrets.

The department plans to require assurances that fluids won't escape underground during the fracturing process, and drilling companies will have to provide — for each well — a plan for disposing of water that flows back.

The hydrofracking concept has met with stiff opposition from environmental and anti-fracking groups, who have said the economic gain of a gas-drilling boom isn't worth the environmental risk.

The area of the state likely to be drilled first if the moratorium is lifted is in the Binghamton region. Rights have already been sold, however, for drilling on thousands of acres of land in the Finger Lakes and Southern Tier areas south and east of Rochester and Monroe County.

The state ended the public comment period on its hydrofracking regulations earlier this month and is poring over thousands of responses. It is unclear when the state will be able to complete its review and decide when to lift its moratorium on drilling.