ROME (Reuters) - An Italian court confirmed that a ruling it issued earlier this month prevented production at the ILVA steel plant in the southern city of Taranto because of longstanding environmental problems at the site, a justice system official said on Monday.

ILVA management had argued that the August 7 ruling allowed operations to continue while upgrades were made to improve safety conditions but in an explanation of its ruling, the court made clear that operations had to shut down, the official said.

Prosecutors investigating the environmental damage had ordered the partial closure of the plant which accounts for around third of Italian steel output and employs some 12,000 workers in a region of high unemployment.

(Reporting By Vicenzo Damiani)