Do I need a permit to place a dumpster in Mercier?
Yes, in all likelihood — and that is the opposite of most neighbouring towns. Section 4.1.5 of by-law 2022-1013 on permits and certificates has read, since February 4, 2026: “However, as soon as the planned work requires a container temporarily, on account of residual construction or demolition materials, the planned work must be the subject of the issuance of a permit or a certificate under this by-law.” The zoning by-law points the same way: its table in section 6.2.2 marks “Container for temporary storage” prohibited in all four yards, except “during renovation or construction work, following and on condition of the issuance of a permit or a certificate”. We do not guess on your behalf: call the single-window service at 450 691-6090, option 1, before delivery, and have them state the duration that will be written on the permit.
Can I have the dumpster placed on the street in front of my house?
We do not promise it, because Mercier's texts do not agree. On one side, by-law 2022-1013 (s. 4.1.2 e) provides for a certificate of authorization to “use the public road to place materials, apparatus, equipment and temporary buildings on it”, and the town charges $11 for that use of the public domain — a study fee, with no published duration or daily rate. On the other, the construction by-law forbids using a street “to place a material or a piece of equipment serving the construction of buildings” (s. 3.7), and the nuisance by-law prohibits storing construction materials or any objects whatsoever on a public road, excepting only work by the town or its contractor (s. 3.12.1 f). So the spot is on your land — that is where we deliver — or we call the town together.
Is it true that a Mercier job site must have its own dumpster?
Yes, and it is written in plain terms. Section 5.3 a) of construction by-law 2009-849 provides that “all refuse and unusable materials must be placed without delay in a container provided for that purpose and located on the job site”, after forbidding anyone to leave refuse of any kind or construction materials in disorder on a lot. Section 5.4 adds that “every contractor must keep the street clean at all times”, and the nuisance by-law prohibits letting “a pile of soil, stone, demolition materials, ashes, refuse or manure” remain on a lot. In Mercier the dumpster is not a convenience: it is what makes a job site compliant.
I am redoing my roof: where do the asphalt shingles go?
Into a dumpster, for lack of any other route. Asphalt shingles are on the refused list at Mercier's drop-off centre, refused from the garbage bin by the Roussillon regional county list, and excluded from the bulky waste collection, which expressly sets aside “construction […] material”. The regional county's directory, asked about asphalt in Mercier, even answers: “We found nothing in your municipality, your region or outside your region.” And roof replacement is precisely the work that here becomes subject to a permit again as soon as it requires a dumpster: one call to the single-window service before delivery, and we handle the rest.
Can Mercier's drop-off centre replace a dumpster?
For a car trunk, yes: the town writes “Deposit up to 6 loads a year free of charge”, on registration with proof of residence. For a job site, no, and the arithmetic uses the town's own figures only. One “other materials” load is a 4 ft × 8 ft trailer filled to 24 inches, about 1.81 m³: six loads come to nearly 14 cubic yards a year, unloaded by hand, engine off, Monday to Saturday, on windows that close at 11:30 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. A 10 yard box holds 7.6 m³, a 20 yard 15.3 m³ — about eight of those trailers — and a 40 yard 30.6 m³. Add that asphalt, shingles, soil and sand are refused there. Rock, concrete, brick and aggregate, on the other hand, are accepted: we are not hiding it.
I manage a building in Mercier: does municipal collection serve me?
Not if you fall under section 5 of by-law 2022-1017: a building bound by a private collection contract, an assimilable industrial, commercial or institutional building producing more than one 360-litre container per collection, or a residential building with more than six dwellings built after August 11, 2022. Section 6 then requires you to “obtain one (1) or more containers of sufficient size” and to “at [your] own expense, contract with a specialized company”. One detail not to miss: proof of the rental contract must be filed before the third tax instalment of each year in order to be exempted from the municipal charge. We supply that contract dated and in your name. Note too that bulky waste collection for buildings served by a container is not offered in Mercier.
Why is the dumpster's spot chosen with a tape measure in Mercier?
Because three constraints stack up on the same lot. A single-family driveway entrance is at most 6 m wide — 9 m with a double garage — without exceeding 50% of the lot width, the lane must stay 1 m from the lot lines and its slope may not exceed 10%. Zoning then prohibits storing any material within three metres of a tree trunk, and requires a front yard to have a tree or a shrub — so there is almost always a trunk in front of the house. Finally, the table in section 6.2.2 closes the front yard to the dumpster until a permit has been issued. Our drivers take those measurements with you when you book, and the PROTEC-O-SOL planks protect the surface once the spot is found.