As early as 1911, George Munro (of the Munro Trail fame) was already trying to protect the area from "introduced game animals, cattle, rapid soil erosion, wildfire, and a number of invasive alien (non-native) plants" through the use of fencing. Care for Kanepuu Preserve is overseen today by The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii and their important mission "is to preserve the plants, animals, and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the places they need to survive."