Forest conservation plays a significant role in environmental sustainability. In Mexico only 8.48 million
ha of forest are used for conservation of biodiversity. Payment for Environmental Services in the Monarch
Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, one of the most important national protected areas, contributes to the
conservation of these forests. In the Reserve, production of rainbow trout has been important for the
rural communities who need to conserve the forest cover in order to maintain the hibernation cycle of
the butterfly. Aquaculture is a highly productive activity for these protected areas, since it harnesses the
existing water resources. In this study, changes from 1999 to 2012 in vegetation and land-use cover in the
El Lindero basin within the Reserve were evaluated in order to determine the conservation status and to
consider the feasibility of aquaculture as a means of sustainable development at community level.
Evaluation involved stereoscopic interpretation of digital aerial photographs from 1999 to 2012 at
1:10,000 scale, comparative analysis by orthocorrected mosaics and restitution on the mosaics.
Between 1999 and 2012, forested land recovered by 28.57 ha (2.70%) at the expense of non-forested
areas, although forest degradation was 3.59%. Forest density increased by 16.87%. In the 46 ha outside
the Reserve, deforestation spread by 0.26%, and land use change was 0.11%.
The trend towards change in forest cover is closely related to conservation programmes, particularly
payment for not extracting timber, reforestation campaigns and surveillance, whose effects have been
exploited for the development of rural aquaculture; this is a new way to improve the socio-economic
status of the population, to avoid logging and to achieve environmental sustainability in the Reserve