NEW YORK — As the Obama administration took the first step Friday to regulate the drilling method known as fracking, opposition to the safety measures underscored the challenge of policing a practice that has cut U.S. dependence on foreign oil but raised fears of environmental damage and water contamination.

Criticism of the regulations was swift and came from energy companies and lawmakers representing fracking states, including California, who said the rules would undercut the domestic energy market. But Interior Secretary Sally Jewell, a former petroleum engineer who has experience with hydraulic fracturing, said safety standards had not evolved since she fracked wells more than 20 years ago in Oklahoma.

“Many of the regulations on the books today haven’t kept pace with advances in technology,” said Jewell, who announced the new rules during a conference call with reporters. She said they were aimed at preventing leakage of the fluids used in fracking, and at requiring companies to make public the chemicals used in their operations.

“There’s a lot of public concern particularly about the safety of groundwater,” Jewell said.

Among other things, the rules require energy companies to publicly disclose the chemicals used in fracking, which involves blasting chemically laden fluid into rock to reach gas and oil.