Winter is coming, and so are increased energy costs. Here’s how Newton is coping.

As winter approaches, Newton residents brace for higher utility bills.

“The last year and a half has been rough,” said Joana Gonçalves, a Newton resident and university student. She said she wears “layers and HeatTech so that we’re not blasting the heating at all hours.”

The Iran war has sent the price of oil soaring to all-time highs. Governor Maura Healey announced last month that Massachusetts is in a “state of energy emergency.”

Geopolitics directly influence energy prices. The Iran war has disrupted the Strait of Hormuz, a global chokepoint for oil transportation, and the Russia-Ukraine war has reduced the output of Russian diesel.

“We’re in this situation because a foreign entanglement has caused these tremendous ripples in the global market for fossil fuels,” said Noah Berman, utility innovation program manager at the Acadia Center, a nonprofit advocacy organization focused on energy and climate policy in New England.

Oil is a globally traded commodity whose price is largely influenced by geopolitics. Reducing the dependence on such volatile fuels can help reduce energy costs in the long term, Berman said.

To read the full article from the Newton Beacon, click here.