As you enter Banks Township from the east you, there is a hint of sulfur in the air.

The closer you get to Tresckow, the scent of smoke gets stronger.Not surprisingly, that is exactly the main complaint made by residents at the recent information session held by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection in Tresckow.The session was conducted to bring residents up to date on the Jeansville mine fire that has been burning near the Carbon/Luzerne County line for almost three years."We were first made aware of the fire in early 2012," said Mike Menghini, Pottsville District Mining manager of DEP."We initially thought it to be contained to the old pit area, but we realized in time that the fire is larger."The fire is burning on both abandoned and active mining sites. The Hazleton Shaft Corporation is leasing the site from Pagnotti Enterprises of Wilkes-Barre and is actively mining part of the area.Both Hazleton Shaft and the Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation are working to extinguish the fire. However, the full extent of the fire's boundaries are unknown at this time.To determine the extent of the fire, DEP hired Kaufman Engineers of Olyphant to conduct a flyover and take a thermal image of the site. The flyover took place May 15. DEP is awaiting the results.DEP announced Friday that the agency has awarded a contract to Minichi Enterprises Inc. of Dupont, Luzerne County, to drill 53 boreholes in the area surrounding the estimated location of the fire to gain more information. Minichi was the lowest bidder at $1,211,530."This work gives us a clearer picture of the extent of the fire and help to determine the most effective next steps," said DEP Deputy Secretary of Active and Abandoned Mine Operations, John Stefanko.One item that has been complicating the progress is that an area south of the site is designated as a habitat of the endangered long-eared bat. The DEP has received a Declaration of Emergency from the Federal Office of Surface Mining which grants DEP permission to enter the area and cut down trees so that the boreholes can be drilled.At this time the smell and sometimes the smoke seem to be the biggest concern of the residents in the surrounding towns of Jeansville and Tresckow. Residents of both towns attended the meeting."We have conducted air quality testing on two occasions," said Jean Grabowski, air quality supervisor of DEP's Northeast Regional Office. "Although we did detect a slight odor during the testing, the tests showed no harmful levels of gas."Grabowski also said it was the department's intention to continue to conduct air quality tests for gas and oxygen levels every two weeks.Residents complained about being awakened in the middle of the night or early morning hours by strong sulfur smells.DEP confirmed on Friday that "additional air monitoring will determine if any dangerous levels of gasses are present."The project is being funded by Pennsylvania's federal abandoned mine land grant, which is subsidized by the coal industry via fees paid on each ton of coal mined. In 2015 Pennsylvania received $44 million from the federal program to support DEP's abandoned mine land and acid mine drainage reclamation programs.