One year after the explosion that caused the BP oil spill, the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history, the effects are still being felt. Despite progress on several fronts, the link between the environment and the economy is becoming clearer and clearer.

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President Barack Obama said in a statement that, with 2,000 responders in the Gulf providing aid, the recovery is far from over.

“We continue to hold BP and other responsible parties fully accountable for the damage they’ve done and the painful losses that they’ve caused,” Obama said “We’re monitoring seafood to ensure its continued safety and implementing aggressive new reforms for offshore oil production in the Gulf so that we can safely and responsibly expand development of our own energy resources.”

“The events that unfolded on April 20, 2010 and the oil spill that followed underscores the critical link between the environment and economic health of the Gulf,” he said.

The last fisheries finally opened on Tuesday, and local economies are beginning to rebound, according to the Economist. The economic and environmental reaches of the disaster extend far beyond coastal communities, however. As for BP, their liabilities continue to grow:

Although it is hard to tot up the company’s ultimate liabilities while the assessments are still under way, it incurred $13.6 billion in response costs in 2010 and has agreed to put $20 billion in an escrow fund, to pay damages to individual claimants for business losses and to state and local governments for clean-up efforts.

After serious scrutiny and a drilling moratorium, the Gulf oil industry is beginning to pick up as well.

Still, some criticize both BP for not doing enough to help the affected communities and the U.S. government for not adequately holding the company accountable.

From Politico’s Peter Lehner:

Congress, after holding more than 50 hearings on the disaster, must now pass legislation that holds polluters accountable and restores the Gulf. That means increasing a company’s financial liability for a catastrophic spill — so well operators, not victims or taxpayers, are responsible for damages.

It also means requiring at least 80 percent of the money from BP’s Clean Water Act fines go to restoring the Gulf waters and coastline. In addition, Congress must ensure that adequate funding is available for regulatory oversight of the oil and gas industry.

Instead Republican leadership in the House is leading Congress backward. They’ve pushed three bills to expand offshore drilling and reduce safeguards. These bills would allow big oil companies to sidestep proper environmental analysis and rush permits in the Gulf. Most concerning, the bill would mandate drilling up and down the Atlantic coast, off the California coast and in the Arctic Ocean and Bristol Bay. They make drilling easier as opposed to safer.

See our infographic of the oil spill aftermath here.

Reach Ryan Faughnder here.