The council's sustainable environment advisory group chairwoman, Williamstown Ward councillor Angela Altair, said the council wanted residents' help to put together a plan.

Addressing last week's council meeting, she said reducing waste was one of the biggest challenges facing humanity.

"One of the biggest, if not the biggest, impediments to the council being sustainable - in fact, humans being sustainable - is the mountain of waste that we're all creating and what the hell we're going to do with it, because it's the greatest impediment to preserving our resources and living sustainably.

"I'm sure all of you have seen some of the extraordinary pictures of Third World countries where people literally live on rubbish tips in the Philippines and South America."

Although people were recycling more, she said they were also producing more waste, particularly 'e-waste' like computers, mobile phones and TVs.

"The next big problem that's to come is the changeover to digital television. They're expecting something like 20million TVs to be dumped around the nation.

"I know that our Environment Minister [Peter] Garrett has made much of his commitment that there will be not one TV put in the tip - in the waste stream - by 2025. Unfortunately, that's too long away."

At the moment, TVs placed in hard rubbish go directly to landfill.

■An 'issues paper' provides recommendations for the Hobsons Bay waste and litter management plan for 2010–14.

It recommends 11 ways ratepayers can cut waste by placing less in their rubbish bins. The council will also host a forum for interested parties to discuss the draft plan.

Residents can have their say on the issues paper by visiting www.hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au/haveyou rsay

Consultation closes on April 1.