CITIZENS' scant regard for conservation messages is adding to Jamaica's water woes, head of the Water Resources Authority Basil Fernandez has said.

Fernandez, who was addressing the Observer's weekly Monday Exchange meeting of reporters and editors, said despite several campaigns on the ongoing drought and falling water levels, the public's poor attitude towards conservation had not changed.

FERNANDEZ all Caricom countries should work together to effects of climate change

"A lot of information has been published but a lot of people don't read. People prefer to watch television, and when you come on television there is just a picture of your face and a little statement and nobody really takes note," he said.

"We had a workshop at the Conference Centre in February and we invited a 120 stakeholders from across the island. (However) we keep getting the same 40 people every time," he said.

At the same time, Dr Michael Taylor, head of the Climate Studies Group at the University of the West Indies, said the situation highlights the overall "add-on" approach taken towards climate change in Jamaica.

"Though climate change and rainfall are intrinsic to our existence they are always treated almost like add-ons in the media, and in the ministries' planning," said Dr Taylor.

"Climate always has to reach to an extreme before anyone notices what people are saying. It is not that it hasn't been preached, and the projections that the end of the year is going to be dry were not out early, but it's how we treat it. We say that it's a thing of the future," he added.

Fernandez, in the meanwhile, stressed that climate change was a regional problem and that all Caribbean Community (Caricom) countries should work together to enhance their capacity to tackle its effects.

"What we have done earlier this year is we prepared a document, which we sent to the Caricom heads of government concerning the water resources situation across the region," he said. "We felt that there needs to be more input from the political side on an integrated fashion to look regionally on our water resources, and the impact of climate change on the Caribbean."