surface mine vs strip mine

surface mine is not a noun while strip mine is a noun.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
surface mine	No	No	Yes	No
strip mine	Yes	No	Yes	No

As verbs, surface mine and strip mine are synonyms defined as:

Other synonyms of surface mine include surface-mine.

surface mine (noun)	strip mine (noun)
	an open mine (usually for coal) where the seams run close to the surface

surface mine (verb)	strip mine (verb)
extract (ore) from a strip-mine	extract (ore) from a strip-mine