We assess the impact of a payment for environmental services scheme implemented in Mexico, the PSA-H, over the 2005-2012 period. By studying several cohorts of program beneficiaries we are able to shed lights on the permanence of the program's impact. Based on the exploitation of 2.5 to 20m resolution SPOT images and ejido-surveys carried out in 76 ejidos located in the Cono Sur of Yucatan, we find that the program's effects are cancelled after communities choose to withdraw from the program, as well as evidence of leakages. We discuss these results from a policy perspective.