Dark thick smog envelops Beijing on Jan. 30. [Chinanews.com]

It is time for authorities to stop focusing on boosting the GDP and take real action to change China's economic growth pattern.

In the meantime, Chinese legislators need to work out stricter laws to punish polluters and those who cover up for them.

China currently has an Environmental Protection Law and dozens of other specific laws regarding pollution of the air, soil, forests and water.

However, laws on paper do not necessarily equate with effective implementation. Many businesses and government officials have sidestepped or completely ignored such laws.

Therefore, while enhancing legislation, authorities must improve supervision by making it more convenient for the public to report on polluters and severely punishing environmental officials who are caught shirking their duties.

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC), has said that the people are the source of China's power.

However, it is the people who must now depend on the government to lift the smog that has choked so many cities, as well as make other efforts to ensure a greener tomorrow.