An effort begun in 1988 is underway to restore the fishpond as a fishery, cultural, scientific, and educational resource.

[3] About a quarter of its circumference is bounded on its southwestern side by private homes constructed on a bluff overlooking the bay.

[1] The wall may be the longest found in any Hawaiian fishpond, extending for an estimated 1.3 miles (2.1 km), or 7,000 feet (2,100 m).

[1] Fish species found in the pond include flathead grey mullet (ʻamaʻama), milkfish (awa), ringtail surgeonfish (pualu), eyestripe surgeonfish (palani), flagtail (āholehole), Pacific threadfin (moi), porcupinefish or burrfish (kōkala), barracuda (kākū), small barred jack and island jack (pāpio),[1] longjaw bonefish and shortjaw bonefish (ʻōʻio), whitesaddle goatfish (Parupeneus porphyreus or kūmū), and yellowstripe goatfish (wekeʻaʻa).

[5] Trapped within the fishpond, they continue to feed and grow until they reach a size suitable for harvest, which in the case of mullet takes about three years.

[1] While coral used in its construction was available in waters adjacent to the fishpond, the basalt rock required for its wall had to be brought to the site from at least 2 miles (3.2 km) away.

[1][2] Presumably, Heʻeia Fishpond underwent various alterations over the centuries in response to events such as storms, floods, and tsunamis.

[5] From around the 1860s, the conversion of taro (kalo) fields first into rice paddies, then into cattle pastures and sugar cane and pineapple fields, increased erosion and threatened Heʻeia Fishpond with sedimentation,[2] as these new uses of the land in the Heʻeia drainage basin lacked the effectiveness of taro patches (lōʻiīkalo) in removing sediment.

[3] The oldest photographs of Heʻeia Fishpond show that between 1880 and 1910 it still had a well-maintained wall, and that the surrounding area included several smaller ponds and fields of banana, taro, pineapple, rice, and sugar cane.

[1][2][3] The fishpond fell into disuse and disrepair for over 20 years after the flood, allowing the mangrove trees to invade it[1] and sediment to build up within it.

[8] In this gap, ocean currents subsequently scoured the seabed up to 6 feet (1.8 m) below grade where the wall had stood in 1965.

[8] In 1992, Brooks and her volunteers completed a temporary 253-foot (77 m) angular wall made up of 70 cubic yards (54 m3) of concrete in waters to landward of the gap where scouring had lowered the seabed level by only 3 feet (0.9 m).

[8] Brooks experimented with aquaculture at the fishpond and had success in raising flathead grey mullet (ʻamaʻama), Pacific threadfin (moi), tilapia, and the edible red seaweed Gracilaria (known as ogonori or "ogo").

[2] In 2000 she joined the University of Hawaiʻi and the Kamakakūokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies in developing and offering the first fishpond management (Mālama Loko Iʻa) class at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa ,[1][2] and her students began to participate in restoration work at the fishpond.

[1] In early 2007, Paepae o Heʻeia estimated that the fishpond, once restored, had the potential to support a population of 1,500 people.

The incident raised concerns that a jet fuel leak from the plane could damage the local environment, including the fish pond itself.

[12] In 2019, Paepae o He‘eia began partnering with the Heʻeia National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERRS) and The Nature Conservancy to enhance invasive seaweed removal efforts.