One of the objectives of this study were to develop a process for manufacturing activated carbons from agricultural by-products(rice shells and saw dust) and another is to measure the iodine number, ash content and removal ratio of COD. The other is to compare those values with those of commercialized activated carbons. Agricultural by-products based activated carbons were manufactured through the steam-reaction method. A rotary kiln type furnace was used for both carbonization and activation. The optimum operating temperatures for carbonization and activation were $650^{circ}C$ and $900^{circ}C$, respectively. For the activated carbons produced under these conditions, the iodine number was 1,127mg/g. Especially, removal efficiency of COD was 61.5% for 40mg/L of wastewater and 30% for 150mg/L of SLS(Sodium Lauryl Sulfate).