Consider the following statements: Statement I: Activated carbon is a good and an attractive tool to remove pollutants from effluent streams and to remediate contaminants from various industries. Statement II: Activated carbon exhibits a large surface area and a strong potential for adsorbing heavy metals. Statement III: Activated carbon can be easily synthesized from environmental wastes with high carbon content. Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

Statement I: Correct. Activated carbon is widely used in wastewater/effluent treatment because it removes many organic pollutants and some inorganic contaminants by adsorption.
Statement II: Correct. Its very high surface area and porous structure give it strong adsorption capacity, including for heavy metals under suitable conditions; this explains why it is useful in pollutant removal.
Statement III: Correct. Activated carbon can be produced from high-carbon agricultural and other environmental wastes (e.g., coconut shell, sawdust, biomass residues); this also supports Statement I by making it an attractive and practical remediation tool.
Option check: Since both Statement II and Statement III are correct, and both help explain Statement I, (a) is correct.