Manheim Twp. resident is Pa.'s first female state forester, oversees 2.2 million acres of forests

Sometimes, Pennsylvania’s first female state forester gazes out the backyard window of her

Manheim Township home and dwells on a European beech tree.

The tree brings Ellen Shultzabarger calm. That’s a good thing because she’s responsible for 2.2 million acres of the commonwealth’s state forests.

Shultzabarger has taken over the reins at the Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry at a time when public and private forests are being buffeted by invasive insects and plants, forest diseases, controversy over natural gas extraction and the effects of climate change.

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