Flares - fiery bursts of burning gas from refinery smokestacks - release pressure from factory pipes. The same flares also spew pollutants, like sulfur dioxide, into the air, which can cause asthma. The EPA sided with NRDC in a suit challenging the lax flare regulation for the ConocoPhillips Wood River Refinery in Roxana, Illinois, across the Mississippi River from St. Louis. The resulting settlement should prevent 500 tons of emissions annually and will be useful in future NRDC litigation.