The Sierra Costera or Coastal Mountains Program of WWF focuses on the watersheds of the Southern Sierra Madre mountains, ranking from the highest points in Oaxaca (Nube de Flandes) with temperate forests, to the lowland tropical dry forests and mangroves of the coast.

	WWF
	Location of the Sierra Costera

• Environment
• Culture, Society and Economy
• Impacts and Treaths
• WWF Activities
• Successes and Progress
• Partners in the Region

Environment
The intricate topography of the region, one of the few with little or no coastal plain, has made development challenging and is the main reason that well-conserved ecosystems still exist. The higher elevations of the watersheds have been proposed as a priority conservation area by CONABIO and as an Area of Conservation Importance for endemic bird species by Birdlife International.

	Carlos Galindo-Leal / WWF

The region around Huatulco in the lower elevations of the watershed has recently been classified as a wetland of international importance by the United Nations Ramsar Convention. Huatulco National Park is located in this area, and recent research has documented the large number of endemic plant species and faunal diversity of this tropical dry forest, including river otters and jaguars.

The lower sections of the watershed have pronounced dry and wet seasons, explaining some of the endemism and seasonal altitudinal migration of some species.

In addition to plants and animals, rural and urban development and Huatulco area tourism all depend on the conservation of the watershed. The dry forests of the coast form part of the Pacific Tropical Dry Forest of Mexico, one of the WWF Global 200—the 200 priority ecoregions of the world, as designated by WWF.

Culture, Society and Economy
The region has a great historical and cultural relevance. Significant historical events occurred in this area. The capture of Vicente Guerrero, independence leader and president of Mexico for a few months, took place in Entrega Bay in Huatulco. Also, the battle of Miahuatlan, one of the most important victories led by president Porfirio Diaz in the liberation from French occupation occurred in the headwaters of the Copalita River.

	© WWF

The majority of the region's inhabitants are of Zapotec origin, although populations of Chontal people live in the upper reaches of the watershed. The process of acculturation and racial mixing is occurring rapidly, especially in the lower elevations, with the consequence that fewer and fewer people speak their native language. In the last two decades, the ethnic composition has changed significantly with the arrival of immigrants from other parts of Mexico and abroad, attracted by the tourism development in the Huatulco region. The majority of the land in the area is under social land title. There are 18 municipalities belonging to four districts. The population in 2000 was 101,416 (INEGI 2000) and included 507 rural population centers, although most of these have many fewer than 1000 people. The coast and the southern Sierra are the poorest and most marginalized parts of the state.

Since 1997, the Copalita-Zimatán-Huatulco region has been influenced directly and indirectly from the tourism development of Huatulco Bays. As a result, the people in the communities closest to the development have integrated themselves into the tourism and construction sectors.

In the headwaters of the watershed, forest exploitation has been carried out by community enterprises. However, in most of the region exploitation by individuals and rent-seeking behavior that benefits timber companies has been the rule.

Oaxaca 's most important coffee-growing region is located in the middle section of the watershed. This zone is known internationally for the production of the highland coffee variety “Pluma Hidalgo .”

En the lower sections of the watershed the economy is based mostly on subsistence agriculture, although there have been significant advances in the cultivation of cash crops in some areas. Cattle production and urbanization of rural areas has also increased in the outskirts of the Huatulco tourism complex.

Impacts and Threats
The principal underlying causes of environmental degradation are:

• Changes in land use from forest to agriculture and livestock
  
• Subdivision of land tenure
  
• Expansion of extensive cattle grazing
  
• Overexploitation of forest species for profit
  
• Selective use of forest species
  
• Illegal hunting and trafficking of wild species
  
• Increased firewood extraction
  
• Forest fires
  
• Use of intensive technology, such as agrochemicals, monoculture, etc.
  
• Abandonment of traditional agricultural systems
  
• Illegal settlements
  
• Population growth
  
• Development and infrastructure projects

WWF Activities
In the last 7 years, WWF has promoted a variety of conservation activities to conserve the natural ecosystems of the Sierra Costera. During this time, the project has evolved from a focus on the local scale to one with a regional vision.

	Carlos Galindo-Leal / WWF

The main actions achieved and supported during this time have concentrated on:

• Support of research to increase the scientific understanding of the Tropical Dry Forest
  
• Institutional strengthening of civil society organizations, academic institutions and local social organizations for research, management and administration of natural resources in the region
  
• Integration of a national strategy for the conservation of the Pacific Tropical Dry Forest of Mexico through expert workshops where threats and priorities are identified
  
• Workshop on addressing the underlying causes of the loss of biodiversity in the tropical dry forests.

Currently, in an alliance with the Gonzal Rio Arronte Foundation, the support of the European Union and DFID and WWF-UK, the Sierra Costera Program of WWF is focusing on the participatory development of an integrated management plan of the watersheds of the Copalita, Zimatan and Huatulco rivers.

Successes and Progress
WWF has achieved important advances with the backing and collaboration of a diverse group of non-governmental organizations (CIEPAM, Comunitas, A. C., GAIA, A.C., Unión Nacional de Trabajadores Agrícolas de Oaxaca, S.C., AgroDer S.C. ), academic institutions (UMAR, UNAM, CIIDIR), and government entities (SEMARNAT, CONAGUA, CONAFOR, CONANP, CDI, IEEO), and regional planning initiatives (Natural Resource Committee of the South Coast, Huatulco National Park Advisory Council, Copalita River Watershed Committee). These include:

	Carlos Galindo-Leal / WWF

• A system of community protected areas (8,500 hectares) in 12 communities
  
• Development of a bioregional vision
  
• Training of community members on conservation themes and community development
  
• Sustainable production projects incorporating alternative technologies
  
• Formation of an inter-institutional alliance for the development of priority watershed management plans based on solid scientific, social and institutional foundations
  
• Biological inventories