surface mining definition
Coal strip mine in Wyoming. Surface mining, including strip mining, open-pit mining and mountaintop removal mining, is a broad category of mining in which soil and rock overlying the mineral deposit (the overburden) are removed.t gained popularity throughout the 20th century, and is now the predominant form of mining in coal beds such as those in Appalachia and America's Midwest. In most forms of surface mining, heavy equipment, such as earthmovers, first remove the overburden.