The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.

(1) “Department” means the department of ecology.

(2) “Drought condition” means that the water supply for a geographic area, or for a significant portion of a geographic area, is below seventy-five percent of normal and the water shortage is likely to create undue hardships for water users or the environment.

(3) “Normal” water supply, for the purpose of determining drought conditions, means the median amount of water available to a geographical area, relative to the most recent thirty-year base period used to define climate normals.