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In the present study, modification, characterization and evaluation of a novel nanocatalyst for heterogeneous Fenton-like degradation of CI Acid Red 17 (AR17), were reported. In the first step, natural clinoptilolite zeolite was modified by the glow discharge plasma. The characterization of plasma-treated sample was investigated by field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), BET surface area analysis. The SEM images of untreated and plasma-treated samples confirmed that the morphology of natural clinoptilolite was changed to nanorod after plasma treatment. Also, the XRD analysis revealed that there was no significant destruction of zeolite structure during the modification process. The BET results showed that the plasma treatment was led to the enhancement of specific surface area of treated zeolite (45.16 m2/g) compared to untreated one (23.92 m2/g). The catalytic performance of plasma-treated zeolite was investigated in the heterogeneous Fenton process towards the decolorization of AR17 solution. Results indicated that the decolorization efficiency of the dye was significantly increased from 60.02%(during 90 min of reaction), in the presence of untreated catalyst, to 100%(during 30 min of reaction) by the using of plasma-treated natural zeolite nanorods.