Mexico City is home to a wetland of international importance: the lake system located at the Xochimilco delegation, which corresponds to the chinampería, is an agricultural system which, from the prehispanic era to date, supplies the mainland with agricultural products. In recent decades, however, the Chinese landscape has been disrupted by the growth of urban spot, fuelled by both natural causes and the action or omission of some public programmes. To understand this impact, the extent of anthropogenic disturbance in the peripheral area of the lake system was measured in three different decades, using statistical indicators in a multivariate and mapping analysis. At the same time, the testimonies of the producers and inhabitants of the area show that the ecosystem has been disrupted.