WRENTHAM - Residents living near King Philip Regional High School say the school is smelling up their neighborhood.

The odors are originating from the school's wastewater treatment plant.

"There seems to be a serious public health issue," Marilyn Shiebler of Lake Street told school officials at Monday night's school board meeting. "I am concerned with the health of families, everyone on the street, the groundwater, lake."

Shiebler said neighborhood children feel ill waiting for their school bus.

And the resident noted she had a party for her 16-year-old that 20 fellow students attended on a Friday. "They were all overcome by noxious fumes," Shiebler said.

The smell she described as a "horrible, horrible, stench" continued through the football game and following days, she added.

School committee member Patrick Francomano responded that the school board recently approved a study of the plant to address the odors, and the study is ongoing.

Air quality tests were scheduled to be done Wednesday.

Business Administrator Paul Schaefer, who acknowledged neighbors periodically have complained about the smell, said the operators of the plant have been doing as much as they can to alleviate the odors.

"There is not much more the company can do. We have to do something about it," Schaefer said.

One potential solution is to completely enclose the underground holding tanks and filter the exhaust gases coming out of the treatment building, he said.

Shiebler said she contacted the board of health in June and expressed irritation that nobody from the school department responded to her concerns.

"I don't think the school is a good neighbor," Shiebler said.

Schaefer said school officials met with the school department's engineer, Weston and Sampson, and the board of health, and that the building committee later recommended the study. The job was bid out, came in under $10,000, and an engineer was hired in August. Results of the study should be ready shortly, Schaefer said.

School officials decided to inform the neighbors of the latest developments.

The plant wasn't part of the $55 million renovation/addition project in recent years.