Hebei province's political advisory body is urging authorities in the region to implement stricter, more coordinated policies to cut emissions and control the worsening air quality in northern China.

Guo Bin, a member of the Hebei committee of China's top political advisory body, said: "We need to coordinate our actions in coping with the most serious smog we have seen in Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei province, instead of blaming each other for producing the pollution."

The political adviser, an expert in environment sciences at Hebei University of Science and Technology, warned that individual efforts aimed at tackling the pollution will not work as well as working together, because neighboring areas can affect each other due to the circulating air.