Beto O’Rourke unveiled a $5 trillion plan to work against climate change, his first major policy proposal since announcing his candidacy to be the Democratic 2020 contender.

The "historic" cost includes $1.5 trillion in direct federal funding. The remaining $3.5 trillion will be "funded with the revenues generated by structural changes to the tax code that ensure corporations and the wealthiest among us pay their fair share and that we finally end the tens of billions of dollars of tax breaks currently given to fossil fuel companies".

Like many other Democratic candidates, Mr O’Rourke pledged to sign executive orders to fight climate change on his first day in office, should he win the presidency. This includes rejoining the 2016 Paris Agreement, from which President Donald Trump withdrew.

The four-part plan detailed on Monday, emphasises responsibility to impoverished communities that often bear the brunt of climate change, with the fourth part focusing on areas that are already facing extreme weather and change. It is consistent with Mr O’Rourke’s somewhat low-key campaign, which has been focused on immigration since the Texan native began his run.

The plan draws inspiration from and even name-checks the Green New Deal, which Mr O’Rourke has been supportive of in conversation. However, Mr O’Rourke’s plan hopes for the US to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 - a major departure from the Green New Deal’s 2030 deadline for the same goal. The Sunrise Movement, the grassroots mobilisation behind the Green New Deal, released a statement expressing their disappointment in this aspect of the plan, which they did say "gets a lot right"

"Beto claims to support the Green New Deal, but his plan is out of line with the timeline it lays out and the scale of action that scientists say is necessary to take here in the United States to give our generation a livable future," the statement read.

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Mr O'Rourke's plan seeks to hit the halfway point to its 2050 goal by 2030 instead.