©Dan Havlik

In a move that is sure to spark outrage amongst nature and wildlife photographers, the U.S. Forest Service wants photographers to pay for a $1,500 permit if they plan to shoot images on Federally-owned wilderness areas. Permits would be required even if you’re shooting images or video with a smartphone.

If you don’t have the permit and are caught taking photos, you could be fined as much as $1,000, according to a report in the Oregonian.

Even if you do pay for the permit, your wilderness photo shoots would have to first be approved by the Forest Service, and they would have to meet specific criteria, including being educational in nature. Photography for any type of advertising purposes on Federal wild lands would be out of the question.

The permit plan, which has not been finalized yet, has already come under fire from photographers, First Amendment advocates, and policiticians.

“The Forest Service needs to rethink any policy that subjects noncommercial photographs and recordings to a burdensome permitting process for something as simple as taking a picture with a cell phone,” U.S. Sen Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) told the Oregonian. “Especially where reporters and bloggers are concerned, this policy raises troubling questions about inappropriate government limits on activity clearly protected by the First Amendment.”

If you want to sound off about this controversial plan, the Forest Service is accepting public comment until November 3rd.

(Via WaPo)