Land-use change is considered one of the main causes of environmental degradation. Thus, its analysis will allow stakeholders to make reasonable decisions for land management. The objective of the present study was to understand the patterns of land-use/land-cover change and deforestation in a territory of importance for livestock development in Nicaragua: La Vía Láctea. The methodology was based on the digital processing of satellite images using the geographic information system that allowed the generation of the thematic cartography of land-use/land-cover for 1978, 1986, 1998, and 2011. Between 1978 and 2011, a total of 93% of the forest cover was converted to pasture for livestock development; this change has been influenced by socio-economic and political factors. This study, moreover, reinforces the idea that livestock is the main driver of deforestation. Landscape restoration requires increasing tree cover by adopting silvopastoral systems that improve biodiversity conservation and the provision of ecosystem services.

土地用途的变化被认为是造成环境退化的主要原因之一。因此，其分析将使利益相关者能够做出合理的土地管理决策。本研究的目的是了解对尼加拉瓜的畜牧业发展至关重要的地区：土地利用/土地覆盖的变化和森林砍伐的模式：拉维亚·拉提亚。该方法基于使用地理信息系统对卫星图像进行数字处理的方法，该系统可以生成1978年，1986年，1998年和2011年的土地利用/土地覆盖专题图。1978年至2011年之间， 93％的森林覆盖率已转变成牧场用于畜牧业发展；这种变化受到社会经济和政治因素的影响。此外，这项研究 强调了牲畜是毁林的主要驱动力的观点。景观恢复需要采用林牧系统来增加树木的覆盖，从而改善生物多样性的保护和生态系统服务的提供。