In 1947, the Mount Barney National Park was established to protect the natural heritage surrounding the peak. Mount Barney was included in the Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves in 1994. The Antarctic beech can be found of the upper slopes of adjacent Mount Nothafagus and in the rainforest of nearby Mount Ballow. Important animal species found on the mountain include platypus, rock wallabies and Coxen's fig parrot. Heath vegetation on the mountain provides habitat for a colony of the endangered eastern bristlebird.