Why do natural areas require a permit for purposes non-disruptive to nature such as photography?

How gorgeous is Northern Colorado? I'd put it up toe-to-toe with any other area of the country in terms of beauty. And we get to live here. Who needs selfies when you see this kind of scenery?

Photo by Dawn Madura/The Coloradoan

As a way to try to keep Fort Collins beautiful, the city requires permits in natural areas for activities deemed to be disruptive, such as bringing in large groups, accessing at night, gathering seeds or leaves, or landing aircraft. 

Note to self: No landing a DC-10 at Legacy Park. Got it.

Nothing in the regulations mention restrictions on photography specifically. However, a permit is required for all commercial activities, regardless of their actual impact. Why would that be? According to the city, the idea is to:

• Avoid and/or minimize the impact of the approved activity on natural and cultural resources.
• Ensure that commercial use operators comply with City Municipal Code, Natural Area Regulations, and other state and federal laws. 
• Avoid the impact of the approved activity on the safety and quality of other visitors’ experience.
• Direct commercial use to appropriate sites and at appropriate times in the interest of avoiding real or perceived impacts to visitors and resources.
• Ensure that participants of commercial activities are outfitted/guided by qualified operators with appropriate insurance. 
• Promote practices related Leave-No-Trace ethics, zero waste (recycling) and carbon neutrality ethics to permittees and activity participants. 
• Outline a fee system to recover full costs of permit processing, oversight, and management of commercial uses.

For specifics costs and obtaining a permit, as well as a whole host of other fancy details, I'd refer you to this document on the city's website. http://www.fcgov.com/naturalareas/pdf/permit-commercial2012.pdf?1335390033

Happy photographing!