Methodist University’s volleyball coach will lead Mintz Christian Academy’s 5-day volleyball camp this summer, according to MCA’s new athletic directory and coach, Dan Heinz. It will be held June 17-21 from 9 a.m. until noon.

Heinz just recently took the helm of Mintz athletics and has hit the ground running. He said Methodist head coach Eddie Matthews will lead the girls in skill development and will emphasize on-court instruction in serving, serve receive, passing, setting, hitting, and blocking. Participates will be actively involved in drills, team competitions, and full six on six games. On Friday, there will be a tournament.

Heinz said MCA’s camp is unique in that participants will learn the game of volleyball in a Christian environment and each day there will be a short devotional.

The camp is open to all girls from any school who will be in grades 6 through 1o and it will be held at the Roseboro-Salemburg Middle School gym.

The cost of the 5-day camp is $75 and each pre-registered and pre-paid camper will receive a camp t-shirt and a volleyball.

Registration deadline is Friday, May 31. To register, please call Mintz Christian Academy at 910-564-6221.

Research is being done all around the world to find a renewable source of energy that can sustain us as a people. Earth has just about seven billion people on it consuming energy. In the not so distant future, non-renewable energy such as fossil fuels will not be available. Renewable energy that is sustainable is the only answer. Energy needs are going up while the supply is going down.

I was intrigued the other day when I saw an advertisement that suggested that maybe the answer to this question was not one large innovation, but many innovations being used simultaneously. Farmers here in North Carolina, and especially hog farmers in southeastern regions, have unique opportunities to help provide renewable energy. Swine waste from lagoons can be stabilized and used for energy production using anaerobic digesters in covered lagoon systems. There are multiple examples of farms using these renewable energy systems here in North Carolina while the process is always improving. This provides our region of North Carolina a unique opportunity to provide renewable energy.

By covering the lagoons, this biogas can be trapped and used to make renewable and sustainable energy. It does this by a process known as anaerobic digestion. This process is where microorganisms act on waste and break them down with an end result of biogas emissions consisting of methane and carbon dioxide mostly. This biogas can be combusted in a micro turbine producing electricity. Electricity produced can be used on the farm and surplus electricity can be sent to the power company and provide additional income for the farmer. Additional benefits for the farm include decreased lagoon odor and gas emissions.

The amount of electricity produced really depends on the size of the lagoon, the amount of biogas produced, and the efficiency of the covered lagoon system. This is a new technology and there are multiple designs with slight variations for harnessing the energy.

In addition, North Carolina law currently requires that at least 12.5 percent of retail power sales of electric utilities come from renewable energy and energy efficiency programs by 2021. A recent bill (298) was brought forth —- that if passed, would repeal the renewable energy law. Recently, growers who have used covered lagoon systems and representatives supporting livestock waste-to-energy spoke out against the bill. Currently the measures taken to repeal the law have been unsuccessful. Livestock producers have invested lots of money in these systems and are providing renewable energy for our state. Please support our producers by not supporting the repeal of the renewable energy law.