The highest court in Italy has upheld a ruling to shut down the blast furnaces at the former ILVA steel plant in Taranto, one of Europe's largest steelworks. After years of campaigning by residents and health advocates, judges ruled that protecting public health outweighs economic interests.

The decision follows concerns over pollution, cancer rates and occupational illnesses linked to the plant. But the closure also threatens thousands of jobs, leaving the southern Italian city divided between health and economic survival.