New industry standards of care and regulatory requirements for tailings facilities drive the need for an increase in the number of, and training available for, engineers and scientists to meet the requirements of improved safe design, construction operation, and closure of tailings facilities. To meet this growing need, three major universities in the US have combined forces to form the Tailings Center. These universities are the Colorado School of Mines (Mines), Colorado State University (CSU), and the University of Arizona (Arizona).

The Tailings Center launched its Tailings Management training program in March of 2021 including six short courses of two weeks duration that provide registrants with an understanding of the Fundamentals of Tailings Management. All courses are offered online, and all content is available both synchronously and asynchronously. Registrants will have access to the course content for 4 weeks after completion of each course. Courses may be taken individually, or all six courses can be taken in sequence earning a Tailings Center certificate of completion. Each completed course carries 15 contact hours. The target audience for these courses are those who seek additional basic knowledge on tailings engineering and management.