If it is a quality-control issue, I suspect Surly will step up and take care of you. Have you contacted them yet? There are a lot of people praising these tires on this and other forums, so maybe you were just unlucky and got tires from a bad batch?

FWIW, I bought a set for my ECR about a year and a half ago - I have put on at least three or four thousand km on them on pavement (commuting), gravel and rough singletrack (touring/bikepacking), and they show no wear, and I still haven't had a flat. I absolutely love these tires for their unbelievable versatility and durability.