In hot water: New Mexico battles the dark side of renewable energy

On the US-Mexico border, residents say a vast geothermal project threatens the water - and claim the state has ignored local concerns to help big energy

• This story was published in conjunction with Searchlight New Mexico

Riding his horse through cattle pasture of brush and brittle mesquite, Randy Walter spotted a steaming, 10ft geyser spewing from a well that had been capped and padlocked for 12 years. It was March 2016, and Walter had ranched the dry terrain of New Mexico's Bootheel for as long as he could remember.

If he knew one thing about the Animas Valley, it was this: water doesn't just blow out of the ground.