Two federal decisions announced in Denver Thursday could keep energy development off the Thompson Divide in the White River National Forest near Glenwood Springs and the Roan Plateau northwest of Rifle, two locations prized for their natural resources and natural beauty.

U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper made the announcement at the Capitol. Hickenlooper called them “sacred places.”

But Sen. Ray Scott of Grand Junction, one of the Republicans being touted for governor in 2018, urges a reality check: Be patient.

“I think it’s a whole new day in January,” he said, referring to Donald Trump becoming president. “All of these decision made by the Obama administration, in my opinion, are going to be reviewed very, very closely, especially as it relates to public lands.”

The measures implemented Thursday for the Roan would be difficult to alter, Scott said. They are the result of a 2014 compromise between conservation groups and oil and gas leaseholders, canceling 17 of the 19 leases issued on the plateau in 2008 and refunding about $47.6 million in bonus bids and annual rental payments to the Bill Barrett Corp.

The agreement keeps drilling off about 35,000 acres atop the plateau.

Lots of jobs are being lost as the federal government tightens its grip on energy development, and the state is losing outside investments, Scott said.

“If you and I were making investments from Houston, Texas, I don’t think I want to invest in a state where the federal government can just come in and take leases away or make it so difficult to produce the energy that the operators say you can just have the leases back, which is what happened the Roan,” he said.

Colorado environmental groups, however, cheered on the Interior Department’s decision to cancel 25 oil and gas leases on about 33,000 acres on and around the Thompson Divide.

Trout Unlimited called it a “major victory” for the Roan Plateau, which the organization prizes as a backcountry wildlife habitat that yields spectacular trout.

“The BLM’s Roan plan recognizes that some natural areas of the Roan are too special and valuable to drill, while other areas can be responsibly developed to help meet our energy needs,” David Nickum, executive director of Colorado Trout Unlimited, said in a statement. “It is the result of good faith dialogue among industry, agencies and conservationists about finding balance and should serve as a model for how BLM can look at resource values on a landscape scale to determine where development should-and should not-take place.”

Pete Maysmith, the executive director of Conservation Colorado, said the wild nature of the two areas warrants utmost protections.

“The BLM has shown leadership by clearly recognizing the importance of these landscapes and has finally rectified the wrongs of previous administrations,” he said.

The federal government didn’t go far enough, in Maysmith’s view.

“The White River National Forest decision fails to add additional common-sense safeguards that would better protect the stunning places west of the Thompson Divide, like Mamm Peak and Battlement Mesa, which are landscapes that should be managed with a keen eye for their remarkable conservation values,” he said in a statement.

Maysmith acknowledge that Trump could likely move in a different direction.