**2.6 Data collection and preparation of samples**

One-liter capacity sample bottles were used for collection of water samples. The bottles and their covers were washed and properly sterilized. When collecting water samples, the sterilized bottles were rinsed with the water to be sampled three times before finally collecting the samples.

Water samples from taps, well and boreholes were collected using the one-liter sterilized bottles fitted with its cover. The sample bottles were filled with water by a gentle flow, for water samples from taps and boreholes. The bottles were then covered and labeled for easy identification. Water samples from wells were fetched to fill a sterilized plastic bucket and transferred immediately into the 1-liter sample bottles. All water samples were stored in cooler containing ice packs and were transported immediately within some few hours to the laboratory where the analysis was carried out.

In this study, 26 samples of ground water and one sample pipe-borne water were collected. The samples were collected from twenty-seven (27) sites in nine (9) locations (KL, BR, SB, SD, MD, TA, TB, KS and SA) all Jalingo Metropolis. The coordinates of each water source sample site were obtained using handheld GPS. The coordinates were recorded and labeled accordingly. This was the data used for drawing the map of water sampling points (**Figure 3**).
