The subsequent jump in oil and gas imports to Japan has not only underscored the country’s crippling energy dependence, but has also exposed how it has lagged its peers in developing renewable energy sources. Contrary to Japan’s reputation for being on the cutting edge of green technology, its adoption of renewable energy has been slow. Excluding hydropower, less than 3 percent of the electricity it generates came from renewable energy sources in 2011.

In an effort to catch up, Japan last year introduced an incentive program to diversify its energy sources. In the program’s first 12 months, through June, the country added 3.6 gigawatts of capacity powered by renewable sources, equal to the output of nearly four nuclear reactors, the Trade Ministry said last week.

Solar power has accounted for most of the clean energy capacity added to Japan. Growth of solar projects is limited, however. Instead, over nine-tenths of Japan’s potential capacity to generate clean energy comes from wind energy, especially those placed offshore, according to estimates from the Environment Ministry.

Norway and Portugal are also experimenting with small-scale, floating wind farms, but Japan’s project is set to be the largest and among the earliest to commercialize the technology.

The biggest challenge for the Fukushima project comes from local fishermen, who have not been able to fish since the disaster and who fear that the project will take away their fishing grounds. Trawlers, in particular, would no longer be able to operate around the farm. On the other hand, there are hopes that the giant chains that anchor the turbines to the seabed will eventually encourage colonies of fish and seaweed.

Fishing cooperatives in the area have agreed only to the three test turbines so far, and the 100 more planned in the area need to be renegotiated once the impact on fisheries in the area becomes clearer.

“All we can say is that we will wait and see,” said Masanori Ono, 63, a fisherman who has worked in waters off Fukushima for over four decades. He now spends much of his time ferrying workers and guests to and from the wind farm.