There are regulations to cover release of vapors and pollutants in the USA. Rule 1118 covers Flares. Flares are a very necessary part of refining because of the dangerous vapors that are involved in processing oil and chemicals.
I have a copy of the full rule if the link does not get you to the site properly. Flares are usually a sign that something is wrong at a plant. If a power outage or other interruption causes equipment to be shut down there are huge amounts of explosive and/or poisonous vapors to be dealt with. A flare is a way of dealing with these vapors and burning them so they do not harm the environment in their present form. See the link http://www.aqmd.gov/rules/reg/reg11/r1118.pdf
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This is what a flare looks like when it is unable to burn cleanly. The refinery will have to pay a fine for this pollution. The cost will be much less than if they let the vapors escape without burning. Large amounts of vapor if released without controls or flaring can cause a big explosion and fire, so sometimes a flare must be used. It is like a safety valve that will open in an emergency.
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This is what a flare looks like when it is unable to burn cleanly. The refinery will have to pay a fine for this pollution. The cost will be much less than if they let the vapors escape without burning. Large amounts of vapor if released without controls or flaring can cause a big explosion and fire, so sometimes a flare must be used. It is like a safety valve that will open in an emergency.