Public Works Minister Derrick Burgess recently reminded the public to conserve water, following months of lower-than-average rainfall.Speaking at the House of Assembly on Friday, Mr Burgess said the lack of rainfall has put a great deal of pressure on the Government to provide potable water.While he said Government is working to meet the demand, he called on the public to do their part.“The first and best solution still remains the same as used by residents for generations,” Mr Burgess said. “And that is to simply control our water usage.As of this weekend, the Island has recorded 11.99in of rain so far this year, far below the average rainfall of 19.90in.“During the months of March and April alone, approximately 28 million imperial gallons of water were sold by the Ministry of Public Works,” he said. “Three million of this total was sold to water truckers.“Customers have called to express concern that they are not receiving water at times, as well as concerns from the water truckers that they cannot fill their trucks from the various distribution plants.“However, I would like to advise the listening audience, without making excuses, that we do have challenges to ensure all points of access to water remain open.”In order to help ease the pressure, Mr Burgess encouraged residents to check the levels of their water tanks so that they can order water a week before the tank runs dry.Mr Burgess said that Government is working to improve water production, with completion of the second phase of the Tynes Bay Water treatment facility expected to be completed in the coming months, and increased water distribution in the west end through a partnership with Bermuda Waterworks.He also said that the Ministry is communicating with water truckers through text message, so that they will be aware of any problems as soon as they arise.“I can assure you that the Ministry is doing all it can to maintain supply and to increase supply where possible in these trying times,” Mr Burgess said.“If residents and businesses of Bermuda don’t manage their own water supplies, the Ministry will continue to have the issues we are experiencing no matter how many wells we dig, no matter how many outlets we provide, no matter how many hours we keep the plants open each day.”